Vicus Capital Makes New Investment in Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

Vicus Capital acquired a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 30,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $79,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LYG. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 149.9% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 29,696,591 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $70,975,000 after buying an additional 17,814,615 shares in the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC lifted its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 96.9% during the fourth quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 21,147,627 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,966,000 after purchasing an additional 10,406,673 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. boosted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 34.8% during the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 7,122,268 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,021,000 after purchasing an additional 1,840,413 shares in the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management bought a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,470,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 22,166,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $52,978,000 after buying an additional 1,180,775 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LYG. Berenberg Bank assumed coverage on Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $2.75 price target on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.55.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

Lloyds Banking Group stock opened at $2.73 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $2.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $2.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 12-month low of $1.88 and a 12-month high of $2.87.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 13.41% and a return on equity of 10.35%. The company had revenue of $14.35 billion during the quarter. On average, research analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Profile

Lloyds Banking Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides a range of banking and financial services in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates in three segments: Retail; Commercial Banking; and Insurance, Pensions and Investments. The Retail segment offers a range of financial service products, including current accounts, savings, mortgages, motor finance, unsecured loans, leasing solutions, and credit cards to personal customers.